Sacrilege?

From recent posts, you all know that I recently built my 4 States NM0S paddle kit. I had purchased it specifically for Field Day use. Personally, I love it! I love its small size, its action and feel. It occurred to me, however, that it might not be the best choice for Field Day for one reason.

I will not be the only CW op there. I will be one of two, or three at the most; and somehow I have a feeling that the paddle's small size will become an issue to the other ops. I'm definitely not bringing my Mercury or Begali paddles. They are too near and dear to my heart, so I decided that I will bring my trusty Vibroplex Vibrokeyer.

It works perfectly, has a good weight to it and is large enough where it will be comfortable in even hands older than mine.

I have one problem with the key, though. That (as far as I'm concerned) ugly tan base. Why in the world Vibroplex chose that color is beyond me. Sorry for the graphic image, but it reminds me of the colors I used to find in our kid's diapers when they were infants.  YUCK!

If memory serves me correctly, I picked this up at a Hamfest years ago. I don't use it all that much and it's usually tucked away on a shelf in the shack. And that's a pity as it's really a fine key. I just can't stand that tan base, it just irks me.

After Field Day is over, I think I am going to disassemble it and re-paint the base with the same Rustoleum Black Hammer Finish paint that I used when I restored my Vibroplex Original Bug. That may devalue it, but I don't really care. I'm not planning on selling it and maybe the new look will merit a place for it on the operating table instead of on the shelf.

I hope I haven't driven any Vibroplex purists to begin pulling out their hair. "You're going to do WHAT?!??"

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Got stuff done!

This past week was extremely busy at work. So busy, that I didn't even get the chance to do my weekly Friday post about contests and special event stations. And yesterday was busy with chores and errands at home. But today I did get some "me time", and I used it to full advantage.

I got the Jackite stand built, And as promised, here are a couple of pictures.

It's made entirely of 2"PVC. And it is all pressed fit together so I can transport it more easily when broken down. I know it looks kind of flimsy, but the idea here is that this stand's purpose is only to hold the Jackite upright while my hands are free to pound in the tent pegs and secure the CamJams and tie down ropes. Otherise, it's just juggling things and watching them fall down, while doing my best octopus impression. I've ordered a camping stuff it bag to make it easy to transport the parts.

The other thing that I got done was to build the 4 States paddle.

It was a pretty easy build, and it works very well. The only thing that I think I got wrong is that the actual paddle levers are upside down, but I have other commercial paddles where the "ears" point down, so that doesn't bother me and it doesn't adversely affect performance.

This will make for a nice Field Day paddle and I can leave my March and Begali paddles safe at home.  The only pre-Field Day chore that I have left to do Is to e-mail all the newly licensed candidates that we've tested over the past year and invite them to Field Day.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Missed opportunity and Christmas memories

I guess I kind of blew an opportunity in the 40 Meter Fox Hunt last night. I didn't walk away empty handed, but I might have walked away with more if I wasn't so tired.

I heard Cathy W4CMG's Hounds baying rather loudly. I tuned 1 kHz down and there she was. I had to tighten up the filters a bit as last night was also the NAQCC mW Sprint. Anyway, I had her frequency picked out and was listening to her hand out pelts. I called a few times with no result and then some kind of digital signal came on, right on top of her! I have no idea what mode it was, as the only ones I can recognize by ear are RTTY and Olivia. This must have been one of the FTs. Fortunately, whoever was generating the signal didn't stick around long, and I finally worked Cathy at 02:23 UTC.

Cathy was the lower Fox, so I dialed up looking for Brian K0DTJ. I heard A Hound (just one!) and dialed down 1 kHz again. This time - nothing. I hung around a while and continued to hear only background noise, so I pulled the plug and went to bed. Looking at Brian's log this morning, I see he started working some East coast stations towards the very end of the hunt. I guess I should have stayed; but as I've said before, that's tough when you have to get up for work at 5:00 AM the next morning. That was no big deal when I was younger, but now ...................

Al Hanzl K2AL was asking about the Christmas keys on the 4 States io group. These were keys that were offered by Marshall Emm N1FN (SK) through his company, Morse Express. Each year a new miniature, yet fully functional straight key woold be offered to us Morse Code enthusiasts. They are so small that the advertising photo always depicted them as Christmas Tree ornaments.

This must have been all new to Al and he was asking for more information about them. Several of us pointed him to various websites and I e-mailed photos of the ones that I have, so he could see examples of what he was asking about,

Most of the ones that I have were manufactured by LLevas Telegrafia (pardon the spelling, I probably have it wrong) until he became an SK. The 2007 key, the only one that's not brass, is the last one that I collected. These are all given to me as Christmas gifts from my wife, Marianne.

I should have included a quarter in the photos to give you and idea how tiny these are. At the same time, these are not gimmicky, junky toys. They are fully functional, superbly manufactured straight keys. If my straight key fist wasn't so lousy, I would use them more. As it is, they've been on my shelf for so long that they need a decent cleaning.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Wouldn't you know it?

My anticipation was growing last week in Upstate NY as Geomagnetic activity was getting greater and greater all week long. My SpaceWeather Live app was going off all week with news of flares, CMEs and such. Finally, there was a better than good chance that I would finally get to see the Northern Lights on Friday night - the last night before we left to return to New Jersey.

Upstate NY decided to pull a New Jersey on me and it clouded up and rained Friday night.

Sheesh.

In any event, I got my POTA logs uploaded yesterday as well as getting them into AC Log. Tonight, I want to make QSO maps for both activations and see how they compare to the RBN maps that I captured. I'll post them here.

The long range forecast for this week is showing the upcoming weekend to be nice. Maybe I can get away for an hour or two to activate Washington Rock, or perhaps the Washington-Rochambeau Trail. Doing POTA activations is kind of like eating Lays potato chips - You can't do just one! It's super easy o get hooked.

But as far as activations go, I'm not one of these guys that needs to get triple digit QSOs in the log. I'm quite happy getting my 10 or more, enjoying the outdoors and nice weather. If 20, 30, or 40 come easy because the bands are good .......great! If the bands are crappy and I only make 10 or 11 contacts, I'm fine with that, too. I'm in it for the experience and the fun.

The 4States QRP Group has come out with a new kit designed by Dave Cripe, NM0S - a CW VOX keyer. For those who may not be able to send Morse in the traditional way due to disabilities  - this will allow Morse to be sent by your transceiver by speaking into it. According to the 4States website: "The CWvox is a unique solution that leverages the ability of Morse Code operators to vocalize Morse Code using "da" for dashes and "dit" for dots. This practice isn't just a novelty; it's a skill that, when done correctly, mirrors the proper length ratio of dashes and dots in Morse Code."

The kit is available for $40 and all the details can be found here - https://www.4sqrp.com/kits/CW-VOX/4SQRP_CW_VOX_%20Manual.pdf

72 de Larry W2LJ 

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Last night

I spent some more time with Skeeter Hunt results, and then it occurred to me. Instead of sending acknowledgements as I post results to  the Scoreboard spreadsheet one by one, I should go through all the e-mails NOW and send acknowledgements. This takes the guess work out of the equation for the Skeeters. So now I can truly say, if you didn't get an acknowledging e-mail from me, I didn't get your log summary.

Thirteen years of doing this, you would have thought this would have occurred to me sooner! Some times I can be so perceptive and on top of things and other times I can be as thick as a brick! Sometimes I get so used to doing what I've been doing that I block out other possibilities for doing things better. Last night I became my own "auto-acknowledgement" tool!

After that, I went down to the shack and opened up the package that I received yesterday from QRP Labs.

When I was down in the shack the other day, I stumbled upon the lithium batteries and holders that I used to use with my PFR-3A. I had them stored away in a few plastic containers. So I took them out and charged up the batteries and changed the connector from the size that the PFR-3A and the KX3 use, to the smaller diameter connector that the QMX uses. Three of the batteries give me 12.1 Volts fully charged, which then drops to just under 12 Volts under load. Perfect for the QMX. I have more batteries and another holder, so I can have two battery packs ready to go whenever I need them. That dummy battery that you see in the 4th position is a wooden dowel with a thumb tack on each end, with a wire going from tack to tack to provide connectivity. Four batteries would produce too high a voltage.

One thing I noticed about the batteries. Of course, just like about everything else, these were manufactured in China. They work fine, but the brand name - "UltraFire". For a lithium battery, I think a better name could have been chosen.

Before I get to the subject of the QMX, you also see a paddle that I just recently purchased. It's a single lever paddle made by CW Morse LLC. 

I found it on eBay after a search on "morse code paddles" that I do from time to time, just to see what's out there. It was $39, and I love single lever paddles and didn't have one for portable ops, so I indulged. It arrived on Monday, but I had to dig up a cable for it, as it didn't come with one. I connected it to the KX3 last night, which I took out of VOX mode so I could use it as a code practice oscillator. I have to tell you, this little guy has a very good feel to it! I was able to adjust the spacing very close, as that's how I like it, and I was able to send code nice and easy! If you're looking for paddles for portable ops, I would recommend that you at least take a look at https://cwmorse.us/. I think you'd be as pleased as I am.

Getting to the QMX. There's going to be a learning curve here. I can tell you I love this little radio already, but it's not quite what I'm used to. After I turned it no, I found out that it was set for 80 Meters. It took me a while to figure out how to change bands. Once I figured out how to get to 40 Meters, I hooked it up to my W3EDP and started tuning around. 

At first, i thought I broke the radio somehow. I could only get it to tune in 10 kHz steps. 7.000 to 7.010 to 7.020 to 7.030 MHz, etc. I couldn't figure out how to get to tune in smaller steps. Then I discovered that you have to go into the menu, go to "VFO Settings" and you have to enable the smaller steps. Wow! Never had to do that on a radio before! I also had to go into the settings to enable the S-Meter, SWR Meter and the Battery Level icon to be displayed. Whew!

It's going to take this fossil a bit of time to master this radio, but once I am there, this is going to be grand! The batteries, the radio, my Emtech ZM-2 tuner and an EFRW will fit into a daypack so easily! I just may start going out at lunchtime to start operating from the Jeep with the Buddisitck again!

I printed out the manual - it's over 100 pages long and I also downloaded the pdf file to my phone. Like I said, I've got a lot of learning to do, but the fun is in the journey as well as the destination. I just hope I don't do anything stupid to accidentally damage it. That would kill me!

72 de Larry W2LLJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

First weekend in May

It's May already! Where's the time going? Here's to warmer weather, outdoor cookouts, possible POTA activations and all the other stuff associated with warm weather.

Contests this weekend:

16 State QSO Parties this weekend! A lot of states are grouped into two area QSO Parties - specifically

7th Call Area QSO Party - http://7qp.org/ (AZ, ID, MT, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY)

New England QSO Party - https://neqp.org/rules/ (CT, ME, MA, RI, VT, NH)

Delaware QSO Party - https://www.fsarc.org/

Indiana QSO Party - http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/rules.html

10-10 Int. Spring Contest, CW - http://www.ten-ten.org/index.php/activity/2013-07-22-20-26-48/qso-party-rules

ARI International DX Contest - https://www.ari.it/

And Monday Night is the May 2024 ARS Spartan Sprint - http://arsqrp.blogspot.com/2009/02/so-whats-spartan-sprint-and-how-do-i.html

Special Event Stations:

05/03/2024 | 10th Annual Jiggy with the Piggy- Barbecue Cook off

May 3-May 4, 1200Z-2300Z, K4C, Concord, NC. Cabarrus Amateur Radio Society. 7.230 14.310 28.430. Certificate. Cabarrus Amateur Radio Society, P.O. Box 785, Concord, NC 28026. www.facebook.com/cabarrusars/ or www.cabarrusars.org

05/04/2024 | Blind Willie McTell Birthday Celebration

May 4, 0900Z-1600Z, W4M, Statesboro, GA. STARS/SARA. 7.250. Certificate & QSL. Douglas Hess, 108 Greenwood Ave , Statesboro, GA 30461. Will be Phone only on HF bands. Will self-spot on Dx Summit. Check club webpage or QRZ page for QSL card/certificate info and for history on Blind Willie McTell and his song he wrote "Statesboro Blues" that put the Allman Brothers on the map and Statesboro for that matter. www.qrz.com/db/W4M or https://statesboroamateurr.wixsite.com/home

05/04/2024 | Frank Conrad Sesquicentennial

May 4, 1300Z-2100Z, KD3KA, Wexford, PA. Allegheny Valley Radio Association. 7.040 7.240 14.040 14.240. QSL. Allegheny Valley Radio Association, P.O. Box 550, Wexford, PA 15090. Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Frank Conrad, engineer and technical founder of KDKA-AM Radio, Pittsburgh, PA. Please see the qrz.com page of KD3KA for details. www.alleghenyvalley.net

05/04/2024 | Homage to Josephine BAKER the voice of the Paris Olympics Games 2024!

May 4-Jul 21, 0000Z-0000Z, TM24JB, Fort Blackmore, FRANCE. F1SXC. 7.124 14.154 18.124 28.424. QSL. David, F1SXC/Radio-club de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, F6KRK, 1 bis avenue des Frênes, MONTIGNY le BTX 78180, FRANCE. Homage to Josephine BAKER the artist, militant, and member of the French resistance. https://www.qrz.com/db/TM24JB

05/04/2024 | N0T - Milwaukee Road Railroad - Newport Tower, 120th Anniversary

May 4, 1400Z-2000Z, N0T, Newport, MN. South East Metro Amateur Radio Club (SEMARC). 7.040 Mhz CW 14.035 Mhz CW 7.220 Mhz Phone 14.260 Mhz Phone. Certificate. David Blume, 8791 77th Street South, Cottage Grove, MN 55016. Questions or comments can be sent to KD0IRF@yahoo.com. Certificates will be available for download 30 days after the event. www.semarc.org

05/04/2024 | NJ Knights of Columbus 128th State Convention

May 4-May 18, 0000Z-2359Z, K0C, Brick, NJ. NJKCARC (N2AJO). 7.225 14.240 21.350 28.340. Certificate & QSL. Art Olson, 339 18th Ave, Brick, NJ 08724. For domestic contacts: QSL card, send SASE; for QSL card and certificate, send two dollars. For DX contacts: QSL card, send two dollars; for QSL card and certificate, send five dollars. For more information, visit K0C on QRZ.com or Email: olson339@comcast.net www.qrz.com/db/K0C

Looks to be a busy weekend on the airwaves!

In closing today's post, I'd like to cross-post something here that appeared on the SPARC Facebook page, from my good friend Dave KD2FSI:

Learn a New Language with just 15 Minutes Per Day!

I’ve been hearing these commercials on the radio lately for the language program Babbel and that you can learn a new language in a few weeks by studying for just 15 minutes a day.

Well, I decided to use that approach towards finally learning the Morse code well enough to use it. So, I have been practicing the code for at least 15 minutes each day for the last month or so and it might be finally starting to sink in. I still have a long way to go, but this time I am going to stick with it.

And with today being the birthday of Guglielmo Marconi, I thought it would be a very fitting day to try and make my first DX CW contact.

3G0YA, the Easter Island DXpedition was working 12-meter CW this afternoon and had a good pile-up going. But after calling at up 1K for about 15 or 20 minutes, I was more than thrilled to hear KD2FSI 5NN! However, it took seeing my call on their Clublog before I believed that I really got them.

So for today I’ll be signing off as 73, DE KD2FSI

So happy for you, Dave! I know you've wanted this for a long time - so happy for your accomplishment!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

A quick reminder and another announcement

QRPTTF, QRP To The Field is this Saturday - another annual effort by Paul NA5N which is very worthy of your time if you are able to participate.

Details here:  http://www.zianet.com/qrp/qrpttf/pg.html

I'm hoping that I can get an end fed up at the library for SPARC's "Amateur Radio Day at the Library" so that I can hand out points while simultaneously demonstrating how Morse Code works.

And the other announcement. This Sunday is the monthly Flying Pigs "Run For The Bacon". This month is a special one - W8PIG/# stations for the various call sign areas will be on the air participating, in part as something special to honor the memory of our Founder W8DIZ (SK).  A special certificate will be awarded to the winner. Details to follow - keep an eye on the various QRP and CW e-mail reflectors and iO Groups later this week.  https://qrpcontest.com/pigrun/

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Good news and bad news

 First the good news ....... there is no bad news!

I spent a bit of time in the shack after dinner last night, and I hooked up the Vibroplex to the computer via that adapter from Ham Radio Solutions. The first thing I found out was that, as it has been such a long time since I last used it, the contacts became so dirty from oxidization as to prevent ANY dits or dahs from being created.

So out came the alcohol and a Q-Tip and an old business card that I found in our desk. Applying the alcohol and wiping it dry with the Q-Tip removed a lot of tarnish. Burnishing the contacts gently with the business card removed even more. The result was that dits and dahs are now being produced, but I have to go to my own Morse Code page connected with this blog to review the procedures for proper adjustment. Even out of whack, I was able to send some CW that the computer was actually able to decipher. My bug fist was not as bad and I had thought it would be! It's more like just plain ol' bad, instead of being horrible or atrocious. I do not think that I will be sending anyone screaming into the night with their ears bleeding, but it's going to take lots more practice before I'm confident enough to take it to the airwaves for some SKCC activity. It would appear that learning to use a bug is like riding a bicycle. You never forget how to do it, but if you've been away from it for a while, you can get pretty rusty.

After playing around with that for  bit, I turned on the KX3 and called "CQ FP" for the Flying Pigs QRP Club "Worked All Pigs" event.  I spotted myself on QRPSPOTS and I turned on RBN to see where my 5 Watts was taking me.

Not bad, as I was even heard down in the Cayman Islands! I was answered by a station most closer to home, however. Gene AA2YO (FP# 4650) from West Deptford, NJ answered my call and we had a nice 20 minute ragchew.  Central NJ to South NJ isn't a really big DX hop, but thanks to Gene, I have my first Flying Pig in the log for this newly revived event. It's a nice alternative to working POTA stations (as much as I love doing that!) with their brief "TU 599 NJ" exchanges. Sometimes you just feel the need for some Morse Code. (Sorry, Maverick!)

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

"Amateur Radio Day at the Library"

As I have previously mentioned, the South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club will be at the Westergard Library in Piscataway, NJ on Saturday, April 20th from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM presenting Amateur Radio to the public at large. If you're in the area, please stop by! We're going to have an FT8 station, a SSB station and of course a CW station. Hopefully we can get all three up and running in order to give the people who visit us a good idea of what this hobby is all about.

Yours truly will be manning the CW station. I hope to get an antenna set up in the small grassy area that I am told is just adjacent to where we will be. Supposedly, there's a window that will allow us to run coax to the outdoors. QRPTTF is that day, so maybe I can operate and show people that Morse Code isn't a relic of the past. The bug-a-boo in my mind is the critical importance of an outside antenna. Last October, when we held a Morse Code demonstration at the JFK Library (also in Piscataway) I tried setting up the AlexLoop only to find the interior fluorescent lighting was generating so much RFI as to make the loop a mere decoration.

My primary goal is to do some "real live operating", or at the very least, some "real live receiving"  I have that little golf ball sized speaker that I can hook up to the KX3, so people can hear what's being received, as the KX3's internal speaker leaves a lot to be desired (Sorry, Eric and Wayne!). I also played around with the KX3's built-in CW decoder last night. I had to open up the manual and look up how to activate it because I think the dinosaurs were still alive the last time I tried to use it. It's finicky in that for it to work half way decently, you have to be listening to a signal that's pretty strong - at least S7 or higher. The outside antenna will be crucial for that. If the signal is weaker than about S7, all you see on the KX3's display is a lot of *'s, e's and t's. Which once again proves that the best on-the-air CW decoder is the gray one that situates itself between one's ears.

Which brings me to today's topic. If worse comes to worse and I can't get on the air, I can resort to Ham Radio Solutions and their VBand CW bot.  The little USB adapter arrived in the mail yesterday. Don't let the picture fool you. This thing is about the size of your thumbnail.

This little gadget allows me to hook up a set of paddles, or a straight key, or even a cootie or bug to my laptop via one of the USB ports. The adapter comes with the required USB cable, which I'm pretty sure is a USB-A to USB-C cable. On the Ham Radio Solutions VBand page, I can send CW and see it displayed on the laptop screen. Or I can have a simulated QSO with their robot. Or, if I get super desperate, there are other channels where you can have a real time live QSO with another Ham via the internet. I'm hoping to use it primarily as a device where people can employ one of my straight keys to send Morse and then see on the screen how they've done. 

I hooked it all up last night and breathed a sigh of relief when it worked the first time. My concern wasn't with the adapter, but with my Lenovo T430 laptop which is kind of getting long in the tooth. My laptop doesn't like newer things, like 5G wifi, for instance - it doesn't even detect it.  To my relief, the USB port detected the adapter right away and there was no frustration in trying to figure out how to configure com ports. (I hate that!)  It took a bit of time to get a good feel for using this set up. I had to turn the auto-spacing feature off as it was screwing up my rhythm in sending.  The default setting is Iambic B and I had to change it to Iambic A as that's what my KX3 is set for and it felt more comfortable. You know, 45 years as a Ham, and I'm still not 100% certain what the difference is between Iambic A & B !! Anyhow, before long I had everything set up so that I could send and the laptop display was actually legible and not just gibberish.

After "Amateur Radio Day At The Library" is in the books, I'll still use this as a way to practice and perfect my bug fist, which is currently somewhere between the "disaster" and "atrocious" stages. And I'll always have it should we give more Amateur Radio demonstrations. Heck, it might be even good to set it up at the Information Table that we set up for Field Day. I'll have to bring that up when we're at the library or at the next club meeting. I can see where putting this right next to the Guest Book might draw some attention.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Looking to increase your code speed?

The Flying Pigs QRP ARCI holds a two hour Sprint each 3rd Sunday of the month called "Run For The Bacon". They also hold two "contests" or operating events each month designed specifically for those you who would like to send and receive CW at a speed no higher than 13 WPM. Remember - the more on-the-air contacts you make, the more and more your code speed will increase!

Appropriately, these are called "Walk For The Bacon" and they are held on 20 and 40 Meters each month. Here are the particulars:

Walk For The Bacon (20 Meter Edition) AKA PigWalk20 CW Contest

This Is a 2 Hour (Total Time)  S L O W  CW Only Contest For 20 Meters Only

Part 1 Operating Window Starts Every Third Wednesday Night Of Every Month

(8-9 PM EDT) = (7-8 PM EST) = (0000Z - 0100Z)

Suggested Frequencies from 14061 to 14065 with 14063 the hot spot

Part 2 Operating Window Starts The Very Next Night

(10-11 PM EDT) = (9-10 PM EST) = (0200Z - 0300Z)

Suggested Frequencies from 14061 to 14065 with 14063 the hot spot

SIMPLE RULES:

Work CW stations only on 20 Meters only

Work the same stations on both days for double points

Maximum CW Speed is 13 WPM (Recommend using Farnsworth Method, maintaining 10-13 WPM or less)

Minimum Exchange: RST, SPC (State/Province/Country), Name and FP# (if a member)

QSO Points: Member = 3 points

QSO Points: Any DX = 5 points (Canada:US Contacts not considered DX)

QSO Points: Non-Member = 1 point

Contest Points = Total of all QSO points for both days.

Power: QRP only ( qrp defined as 5 watts or less RF transmitter output)

Suggest calling "CQ FP" or "CQ OINK.   "---..-.-.-" has a nice ring to it.

Submit your score to the Autolog page at http://qrpcontest.com/pigwalk20/autolog.php

Walk For The Bacon (40 Meter Edition) AKA PigWalk40 CW Contest

This Is a 2 Hour (Total Time)  S L O W  CW Only Contest For 40 Meters Only

Part 1 Operating Window Starts Every First Wednesday Night Of Every Month

(8-9 PM EDT) = (7-8 PM EST) = (0000Z - 0100Z)

Suggested Frequencies from 7050 to 7065 with 7060 the hot spot

Part 2 Operating Window Starts The Very Next Night

(10-11 PM EDT) = (9-10 PM EST) = (0200Z - 0300Z)

Suggested Frequencies from 7110 to 7125 with 7123 the hot spot

SIMPLE RULES:

Work CW stations only on 40 Meters only

Work the same stations on both days for double points

Maximum CW Speed is 13 WPM (Recommend using Farnsworth Method, maintaining 10-13 WPM or less)

Minimum Exchange: RST, SPC (State/Province/Country), Name and FP# (if a member)

QSO Points: Member = 3 points

QSO Points: Any DX = 5 points (Canada:US Contacts not considered DX)

QSO Points: Non-Member = 1 point

Contest Points = Total of all QSO points for both days.

Power: QRP only ( qrp defined as 5 watts or less RF transmitter output)

Suggest calling "CQ FP" or "CQ OINK.   "---..-.-.-" has a nice ring to it.

You can gander at the Autolog page for April 2024 at http://qrpcontest.com/pigwalk40/autolog.php

You DO NOT have to be a member of the Flying Pigs to join in on these events - but why wouldn't you want to?  How can you not like an organization whose motto is: "No Dues, No Rules, Just Fun - and if we don't like it we fix it!"

If you WOULD like to join, please visit: https://www.fpqrp.org/join.php

72 de Larry W2LJ es "oo" - FP# 612

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

World Amateur Radio Day - April 18th

From the ARRL:

World Amateur Radio Day is April 18, 2024

World Amateur Radio Day (WARD) is celebrated each year on April 18.

The theme for 2024 is, "A Century of Connections: Celebrating 100 Years of Amateur Radio Innovation, Community, and Advocacy." The global event covers all of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) regions and spans 2 days: Thursday, April 18, 2024, 0000 UTC to Friday, April 19, 2024, 0000 UTC.

On April 18, 1925, the IARU was formed in Paris and will celebrate its centenary in 2025. American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Co-Founder Hiram Percy Maxim was the organization's first president.

All radio amateurs are invited to take to the airwaves to enjoy the global friendship with other amateurs and to show their skills and capabilities to the public. WARD is not a contest but rather an opportunity to talk about the value of amateur radio to the public and fellow amateur colleagues. It is also a great opportunity to talk about local radio clubs and amateur radio in local media as a lead-up to ARRL Field Day, which is held each year during the fourth full weekend in June. You can also promote your personal WARD activities on social media platforms like X and Facebook by using the hashtag #WorldAmateurRadioDay.

For more ideas and information, visit World Amateur Radio Day (arrl.org).

________________________________________________________________________________________

And just one week later is International Marconi Day, as discussed in a previous post. A lot of radio and Amateur Radio history occurred in April!

In an unrelated topic, I saw this on YouTube: - something I've never heard of before.

This is really wild! I kind of wish this kind of thing had been available when I was studying for my Novice license back in 1978. I like to think it would have made that first ever QSO a little less nerve wracking. I distinctly remember finishing that QSO and being wiped out - but yet hungry for the next one.

Admittedly, there's nothing like making real life QSOs on the air to improve your CW skills, but if you want to learn good sending technique BEFORE you have your ticket, this is a neat way to legally do it! Purchasing that adapter and hooking up either paddles or a key to the laptop seems to be the way to go. Using the [ and ] keys is clunky at best and takes a bit getting used to  It's fun to play around with using the two keyboard keys, but even in simulated QSOs, nothing would beat a real straight key, cootie or paddles.

I can think of a couple of instances where this bot would really come in handy. One would be for practising sending Morse with a bug. I don't use my Vibroplex often enough to be proficient with it and I hate to put anyone through the torture of listening to me shake the rust off. This would be the perfect tool for that!  I can't tell you how many times I hear really poor CW on the bands because someone is using a bug - badly. I don't want to be one of those guys!

The other instance would be as a Morse Code demonstration device. SPARC is doing "Amateur Radio at the Library" on Saturday, April 20th at a library in the neighboring town of Piscataway. I think folks might get a kick out of sending code to the bot. I did order one of those USB interfaces and will bring my laptop in addition to setting up an actual CW station. If the bands are cruddy or dead, all will not be lost.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

"Marc" your calendars

From the ARRL:

International Marconi Day 2024

03/22/2024

This year, International Marconi Day (IMD) is on April 27. Italian inventor and electrical engineer Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi was born on April 25, 1874, and is credited for inventing the radiotelegraph system, creating Marconi's law, and sending the first wireless transmission over the open sea.

IMD was created to honor Marconi and is hosted annually by the Cornish Radio Amateur Club, GX4CRC. The purpose of the day is for amateur radio enthusiasts around the world to contact historic Marconi sites using communication techniques similar to those that he would have used.  

The 24-hour event will operate from 0000 UTC to 2359 UTC, and registration is required. Participants can register at GX4CRC's registration web page.  

Stations in the United States, including Marconi Cape Cod Radio Club, KM1CC, in Massachusetts, are already registering for the event. KM1CC hosts several on-air events each year to keep the accomplishments and story of Marconi and his wireless station site in South Wellfleet alive. In 1975, the Wellfleet station was listed as a National Historic Landmark on the National Register of Historic Places and is now part of Cape Cod National Seashore, a unit of the National Park Service. When possible, KM1CC sets up a temporary radio station inside the park. More information about KM1CC is available on their Facebook page.

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April 27th is a Saturday! And if memory serves me correctly, there's a Marconi Memorial at the intersection of Easton Avenue and JFK Boulevard in Somerset, NJ. The New Brunswick Marconi Station was located at that site. 

That's maybe about a 15 -20 minute drive from my house. I operated from there one time many years ago with the Raritan Bay Radio Amateurs when I was a member of that club before getting married and moving to South Plainfield. It's not a POTA site (but probably should be) but still might be fun to operate from on that day.  I'll have to drive by sometime this weekend and check it out.  SPARC event, maybe?

Since this weekend is Easter weekend, I'm going to post the weekend's goings on a day early. I doubt I'll be on the air - I'll be too busy coloring eggs, of course!

Contests:

QRP Sasquatch Stomp: https://www.pnwqrp.org/sasquatch-stomp

CQ WW WPX Contest, SSB - https://www.cqwpx.com/rules.htm

However, Monday evening we have:

ARS Spartan Sprint - http://arsqrp.blogspot.com/2009/02/so-whats-spartan-sprint-and-how-do-i.html

Special events:

03/30/2024 | Total Solar Eclipse in Hunt county Texas

Mar 30-Apr 10, 0000Z-2359Z, W5E, Greenville, TX. Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association. 7.235 14.280 21.400 28.450. QSL. K5GVL Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association, PO Box 843, Greenville, TX 75403-0843. The Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association will be celebrating a once in a lifetime solar event. On April 8th 2024 our favorite star the sun will be totally eclipsed for over 4 minutes! This will allow direct observation of the suns corona in real time. The SVARA will be operating W5E "Whiskey 5 Eclipse" from March 30th until April 10th to celebrate this unique and magical event! https://k5gvl.com/w5e-total-solar-eclipse-special-event-station

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The "King" is here this weekend.

At least one of them, anyway.  Perhaps, the oldest DX Contest - the ARRL WW DX CW is this weekend. Again, as long as Ol' Sol doesn't throw a fit and cough up on all of us - we're as close to the peak of the sunspot cycle as we can be. If your backside is inclined to sit for the entire event, there's no reason you can't substantially fatten up your DXCC tally - or even complete your DXCC if you don't have it yet.

Personally, I am only four countries away from making DXCC on 15 Meters and 12 countries away from DXCC on 10 Meters. I'll have to see what I can accomplish on those two bands this weekend.

QRPers ...... the best part of the contest is Saturday night and into Sunday. A lot of the big guns will be looking for points to pad their tallies and will listen for weaker signals - especially Sunday afternoon.

New CW'ers - the exchange is easy! Signal report and your state or province. The report back to you will be a signal report and output power report. The exchange is not difficult and after a while you will notice your ability to copy higher speed CW has increased.

New in the contest for 2024:

Limited Antenna Overlay: Any Single Operator or Single Operator Unlimited entrant can enter using the Limited Antennas Overlay. Operation is limited to the use of single-element antennas such as a single vertical, end-fed wire, or a single dipole antenna no more than 50 feet above ground at its highest point. The antenna(s) may cover multiple bands, as in the case of multiband verticals and dipoles with fan or trap constructions.

Contests: 

ARRL Inter. DX Contest, CW - http://www.arrl.org/arrl-dx

YLRL YL-OM Contest - https://ylrl.net/contest-submission/

FISTS Sunday Sprint - https://fistsna.org/operating.html#sprints

Run for the Bacon QRP Contest - http://qrpcontest.com/pigrun/

Special Event Stations:

02/17/2024 | 40th Anniversary for Mid State Amateur Radio Club

Feb 17-Feb 24, 0000Z-2100Z, W9MID, Franklin, IN. Mid State Amateur Radio Club. 14.265 7.227. QSL. Chris Frederick, 255 Hillendale Dr, Greenwood, IN 46142. https://midstatehams.org

02/17/2024 | HL Hunley Submarine special event station – N4HLH 2024

Feb 17, 1500Z-1900Z, N4HLH, Sullivans Island, SC. Trident Amateur Radio Club. 7.117(CW) 7.262 14.262 28.462 . QSL. N4HLH / Trident Amateur Radio Club, P.O. Box 60732, North Charleston, SC 29419. https://www.tridenthams.org/hl-hunley

02/17/2024 | Ice Station W0JH - Frozen Minnesota Lake Portable

Feb 17-Feb 19, 1600Z-2300Z, W0JH, Stillwater, MN. Stillwater (MN) Amateur Radio Association (SARA). 21.360 14.260 7.260 3.860. Certificate. Available by, email only, W0JHice@outlook.com, MN 55082. W0JH will operate portable from a frozen lake in Washington County, Minnesota (Grid Square EN34). In a meager attempt to drive away the remainder of Minnesota winter, the Stillwater Amateur Radio Association will be generating as much RF as possible over the President's Day long weekend. (Please help us!!) Certificates will ONLY be sent via email in PDF format. (Send requests with standard QSL confirmation info to: W0JHice@outlook.com). There is no need to send a QSL card. Info: W0JH at www.QRZ.com & www.Radioham.org

02/17/2024 | Washington's Birthday Celebration

Feb 17, 1500Z-2100Z, W0ARC, Washington, IA. Washington Area Amateur Radio Club, Inc. 7.071, 7.200 14.071, 14.275 21.074, 21.310 28.071, 28.350. QSL. Mark Lukins, AB0DX, 802 N 2nd Ave, Washington, IA 52353. Find us on 10, 15, 20, and 40M phone as well! Look for us on DX Summit. Send a SASE to us for a commemorative QSL card. We are located in Washington county, Washington township, City of Washington, on Washington street!! www.waarc.net

02/18/2024 | Engineer’s Week at Collins Aerospace

Feb 18-Feb 24, 1700Z-1900Z, W0CXX, Cedar Rapids, IA. Collins Amateur Radio Club. 7.180 MHz 14.263 MHz 21.380 MHz 28.380 MHz. QSL. Engineer's Week at Collins Aerospace SES, 1110 Lyndhurst Dr, Hiawatha, IA 52233. Note: The times are during lunch break however there may be times outside of what is specified that club members may operate during these days especially Sunday (18th) and Saturday (24th). https://www.qrz.com/db/W0CXX

02/18/2024 | GEORGE WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY

Feb 18-Feb 19, 1500Z-2000Z, K4US, Alexandria, VA. Mount Vernon Amateur Radio Club (MVARC). 7.042 7.242 14.042 14.242. QSL. MVARC, P.O. Box 7234, Alexandria, VA 22307. mvarc.org

02/19/2024 | Dry Tortugas & The Florida Keys 2024

Feb 19-Feb 29, 0000Z-0000Z, N4T, Mount Joy, PA. Molly & Friends. 14.336; SSB, CW, FT8/FT4, and satellites. QSL. Molly Sauder, 1509 Pinkerton Rd, Mount Joy, PA 17552. Here's your chance for a rare grid as well as ARLHS, IOTA, POTA, USI and WLOTA. We plan to be on air using SSB, CW, FT8/FT4 and satellites. Spot via POTA & DX Summit. mollyandfriends6@gmail.com

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Quickie video

 

Bas PE4BAS ignited an idea in my brain about getting the audio that Bob sent me of his Progressive Receiver incorporated into the blog. I decided to let my video maker software generate a quick, down and dirty video. I apologize for the roughness of this effort, as the images are appearing multiple times in order to fit in most of the sound file that Bob sent me. This video is definitely not one of my better efforts, but it does serve as a vehicle to allow me to include the sound his new build produces. Sorry, Bob - you deserve better than this, but I wanted everyone to hear how good your receiver sounds!

And for those of you who have trouble with the Morse Code, here's a few world famous fellows doing some translating:

Those "eh eh ehhhh eh eh" sounds were PBX YSM TDM NVE ZYL. Gibberish, but at least it was actual letters and not just random dits and dahs!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Excelsior! - K2ORS!

 

Jean Shepherd was an American raconteur, author, radio show host perhaps best known for the movie "A Christmas Story" which originally appeared in his books "In God We Trust - All Others Pay Cash" and "Wands Hickey's Night of Golden Memories". I saw this picture on Facebook and had to cross-post here. The artist did a fantastic job and you can see the similarities in the facial features in the picture above and the photo below.

I had the pleasure of listening to K2ORS when he used to have a nightly radio show on WOR  - 710 on your AM Radio dial in NYC, and I also had the pleasure of seeing him live at Princeton University when he gave a show at one of their College Alumni weekends back in the 1980s.  Jean was also an Amateur Radio Op, a Ham - call sign K2ORS, and some of his best shows were the ones about Amateur Radio.

There are a few others that you can find on YouTube, but these are my favorites.

I wish we had someone like this as an ambassador for Amateur Radio today.

Oh ..... and by the way, Happy Hallowe'en!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Another problem solved

 I was having a problem with my Bencher Mercury paddle.

The dit paddle was being real finicky. I originally thought it was a dirty contact, so I cleaned it and it would work for a while and then stop. Then I thought maybe I just had the spacing adjusted incorrectly, so I re-adjusted that. It would work for a while, and then stop.

I turned the paddle over and looked at the connections underneath and all seemed well. My frustration level was increasing as I like to use this paddle. I have both this and my Begali Simplex Mono adjusted so that they feel like as close as I can get them to feel like touch paddles. Both are on the bench and I will use either one, depending on my mood at the time. I purchased the Mercury from Len WB2HKK who was selling it from Bart WB2HEK's estate after Bart had become an SK. Bart and I were both members of the Old Bridge Radio Association back in the day, so I like to use it in his honor. But this dit paddle problem was vexing to say the least.

It turned out the problem was my fault. It turned out to be an intermittent at the stereo plug end.

I hate soldering these things! The soldering lugs are so tiny and there's never enough space to keep the connections from interfering with one another, once you put the cover back on. I usually end up stripping off too much wire insulation, leaving too much wire exposed, and then the wires inevitably end up touching one another causing problems.  I figured this out when I ended up taking the cover off, and expanding the space between the connections a bit with my fingers. As long as the cover remained off, the paddle worked fine. When I put the cover back on, it would squeeze the connections together just enough to cause problems. Way back when, when paddles and straight keys connected to rigs with 1/4" plugs this wasn't a problem. There was enough space where I could carefully wrap two of the connections with thin slivers of electrical tape, so even if the connections were squeezed together, there was no electrical contact made.

I knew that some of the old 19" Viewsonic monitors here at work had a 6 foot cable with these type of stereo plugs pre-molded on at both ends. The 19" Viewsonic monitors are being replaced with Lenovo 24" monitors and are being picked up by an e-waste collection agency for recycling. So I dug through the e-waste bin and came up with one of the cables. Thankfully, it was none the worse for wear and brought it home. I cut it in half and replaced the whole cable assembly on the paddle. Works perfectly now and I completed the mission - recycling, W2LJ style! As a bonus, I now I have an extra 3 foot cable on hand should the need ever arise. And yes, I guess you can rightfully call me a garbage picker, now!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least1

Morse Code

 First the QRP Image of the Day:

Posted to Facebook by Peter OO7Z - who had a QSO with Reiner DL5YJN, who was using his homebrewed transceiver.

Every now and then I like to post about what it takes to learn Morse Code. After 45 years of being an Amateur Radio Op, I've learned that the journey is different for each one of us. What works for one may not work for another. What works for most may not work for someone else at all.

That all being said, I think the biggest "thing" about learning Morse Code is one's attitude. I know this from personal experience. I wanted to become a Ham while I was in High School. I was 16, bought myself an AMECO Morse Code LP and listened to it and failed, miserably. Not only did I fail miserably, but I convinced myself that I couldn't do it. It would never happen. I gave up. I didn't even bother taking the exam.

Fast forward a few years and a Novice license class became available at a neighboring town's High School as an Adult Education Program. This time, a little bit older and a little bit wiser (perhaps) I decided to grit my teeth, bare down and finally overcome this obstacle that had barred my entry a few years earlier. I wanted it bad enough, and that made all the difference.

I did it! But I did it the wrong way, in retrospect. I was given a set of ARRL Novice Morse Code cassette tapes (remember those?) and learned the code. But I learned it at the 5 WPM speed that was required at the time, but also at a slow, dragged out sending speed.

Why was this bad? It was bad because I counted on counting the dits and dahs, and then translating that into the letters. That may have been fine and dandy for the 5 WPM Novice Exam, but when I wanted to upgrade to General, I hit a plateau at 10 WPM, on my way to 13 WPM. And needless to say, that was a hard plateau to get over! It was then that I learned of the term "Farnsworth". This method of Morse Code learning is to hear the individual letters at a speed of about 18 WPM, but put enough spacing between the letters to bring down the effective receiving rate at say, 13 WPM for the General test.

It was tough! I had to effectively "unlearn" Morse Code and learn it all over again. But I hung with it and between those kind of code tapes and a lot of on the air QSOs, I was able to pass my General in the summer of 1979, less than a year after I was originally licensed.

Cassettes tapes and Morse Code LPs have gone the way of the Dodo. How is one to learn Morse Code today? Fortunately, there are a lot of Morse Code learning apps. Google and the Play Store or the iTunes store are your friends and I suggest trying out a bunch until you find the one you like the best. The one that I like the most and still use to this day is the "Morse Trainer" app by Wolphi on my Android phone. It costs about 4 bucks for the app, but I think is worth several times that. Not only will it teach you Morse Code, but even when you think you've become proficient, it will help you improve your speed.

In an on-the-air QSO, depending on the day, I can be comfortable with speeds between 18 and 30 WPM. When my head is clear and my mind is fresh, I can keep up with someone sending at 30 WPM. When I'm tired and my brain is nothing more than a bowl of tapioca pudding, I'll probably go with anywhere from 18 to 23 WPM. The great thing about Morse Trainer is that you can set is as high as 60 WPM. Currently, I have it set for 40 WPM and I try to play it in the background while I'm doing other things.

Yes, you read that right. I like to play Morse Code in the background while I'm doing other things. At this point, I'm just listening to rhythm and spacing. I'm not even consciously trying to decode, I'm just listening. No pressure, no tension, just listening and you'll be surprised how many words will just pop into your brain. I try and get at least ten or so minutes of this a day. It keeps me sharp and helps me increase my speed. I've noticed that during Field Day, I can even decode the speed demons that are sending at 40+ WPM rates. I'm not comfortable there, but I can keep up, even if it means having to listen a couple of times.

If you're attempting to learn Morse Code for the very first time, I would highly recommend limiting your sessions to no longer than 15 minutes at a time and at the very most, two sessions a day. You don't want to burn out and you don't want to let frustration set in. Frustration and worry are your two biggest enemies in learning Morse Code.

Listen and practice when you're not overly tired and most of all relax! Relax, relax and relax some more. I repeat, worrying about your speed, worrying that "you're not getting it" is the worst thing you can do. It will come, I promise! If I can do it, anyone can. And remember, I was convinced I couldn't learn Morse Code until I convinced myself that I could. I've gone from someone who absolutely hated it to being a Ham who only communicates via Morse Code, using phone only very unfrequently.

And knowing Morse Code can help you do other fun things. I received these images from Tim K0ETH, who included me on his team to decode the Morse Code sent by the Maritime Radio Historical Society last Summer, in a competition to decode an Enigma message. According to the letter, we were the first to successfully do it. Cool beans!

Good luck and may the Morse be with you!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

As expected

Keeping an on the newly renamed "Elecraft - AX/KX/KH" io.group over the weekend, sales of the KH1 are brisk. I didn't look to be honest, but I'm not even sure a shipping date has been announced. And I guess it's just me, but I was amazed that so many people were willing to plunk down money, just like that!

I guess I'm not as big an Elecraft fan as I thought I was - I don't need to have one of everything. HI HI !

The weekend was POTAful. I worked a bunch of POTA stations including Alan W2AEW who was activating the Washington-Rochambeau Historical Trail, which is technically a block away from home. He stated that he was in NJ, but that could be so many places in New Jersey.  The trail stretches from Rhode Island down to Virginia and  traverses NJ from top to bottom.

I activated the trail three times during NPOTA. My very first activation in January 2016 was from the Ashbrook Golf Course parking lot, which is less than 100 feet from the trail. The second and third activations were from the Frasee House in Scotch Plains, which sits right on the trail. The second was for the NJQRP Skeeter Hunt in 2016 and the third was on the last Day of NPOTA - my last activation for that fantastic year.

It is good to be on the air again and I've noticed the more I get on, the more I want to be on! I'll be down in the shack again tonight after work, working on 2022 Skeeter Hunt certificates. I'll have the radio on, and I'll be listening while I'm working.

Speaking of that, I recently purchased one of these via eBay:

It's a little amplified speaker about the size of a golf ball, and it plugs right into the KX3's headphone jack. It has self contained batteries that are charged via a USB cable. The manufacturer claims a charge will provide 12 hours of speaker use. When I operate, I use earbuds, but for casual background listening, I plug this little guy in and it produces a lot of volume. The internal speaker of the KX3 is not the best, to say the least. This little guy fills the shack with sound without having to turn the AF gain to the max.

I'm also going to procure a splitter cable so that during Field Day, I can still use my earbuds, but also plug this in, so visitors can hear what operating CW sounds like. Up until now, I've had to use earbuds as the KX3's onboard speaker is just not enough in an outdoor environment, especially as my ears get older and older.  People have come by and have just watched me "doing something" without being able to hear what it is that I'm doing. That HAD to be boring, and I think this will bring it home for onlookers and make it more interesting for them to watch the ol' fossil and listen to him as he actually makes Morse Code exchanges. They may not understand what is being transmitted, but it will be apparent that SOMETHING, is indeed happening. Who knows? Maybe besides annoying the SSB guys, it will spark an interest in a few people to learn Morse Code.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Coming this weekend

On Saturday, I'll be assisting fellow SPARC member Harry KC2PGX at a Morse Code demonstration at a local library for "How To Day". I'm not 1000% how he's going to have this set up, but I believe he'll have a couple of code practice oscillators set up along with a laptop running a decoder program. In the past, when I was involved in an Amateur Radio demo for "Bring Your Kids To Work Day" at the IEEE, the Morse Code portion was the biggest hit. The kids had fun sending Morse asking us questions to see if we could decode what they were sending and answer them. It should be a fun day.

I'll bring my KX3 and AlexLoop along and will have it tuned to one of the CW portions of a band. There should be a decent amount of activity. I've listed the contests and special events occurring this weekend below:

Let's try this one again!

QRP-ARCI's Fall QSO Party is this coming Sunday

2023 QRP-ARCI Fall QSO Party

Date/Time:

0000Z to 2359Z on 14 October (2nd Saturday UTC) - (8PM SAT to 7:59PM SUN EDT)

Mode:  HF CW only.

Exchange: 

Members send:  RST, State/Province/Country, ARCI member number

Non-Members send:  RST, State/Province/Country, Power Out

QSO Points:

Member = 5 points

Non-Member, Different Continent = 4 points

Non-Member, Same Continent = 2 points

Multiplier:

SPC (State/Province/Country) total for all bands.  The same station may be worked on multiple bands for QSO points and SPC credit.

Power Multiplier:

>5 Watts = x1

>1 - 5 Watts = x7

>250 mW - 1 Watt = x10

>55 mW - 250 mW = x15

55 mW or less = x20

Suggested Frequencies:

160m1810 kHz

80m 3560 kHz

40m 7030 kHz (please listen at 7040 kHz for rock bound participants)

20m 14060 kHz

15m  21060 kHz

10m  28060 kHz

Score:

Final Score = Points (total for all bands) x SPCs (total for all bands) x Power Multiplier.

BONUS POINTS: None available for this contest.

Categories:

Entry may be All-Band, Single Band, High Bands (10m-15m-20m) or Low Bands (40m-80m)

How to Participate:

Get on any of the HF bands except the WARC bands and hang out near the QRP frequencies.  Work as many stations calling CQ QRP.  You can work a station for credit once on each band.

Log Submission: Submit your entry online at https://www.qrpcontest.com  Deadline for posting logs will be Nov 1st

Other contests this weekend with a QRP Category:

Arizona QSO Party - https://www.azqp.org/

Pennsylvania QSO Party - http://paqso.org/pa-qso-party-rules.html

South Dakota QSO Party - http://www.sdqsoparty.com - This is a good one for those of you trying to snare QRP WAS.

BIG weekend for Special Event Stations:

• 10/14/2023 | "Ike" Eisenhower's Birthday - Sponsor of Nuclear Ship Savannah

  Oct 14, 1300Z-2100Z, K3S, Baltimore, MD. Nuclear Ship Savannah ARC. 7 14 21 28. QSL. ULIS FLEMING, 980 PATUXENT ROAD, Odenton, MD 21113. Operating from the ship. Please check the spotting networks since we may be operating anywhere on 40, 20, 15, or 10m SSB or CW. qrz.com/db/k3s

• 10/14/2023 | 30th Anniversary

  Oct 14, 1400Z-2300Z, N5BVA, Bentonville, AR. Bella Vista Radio Club. 7.190 14.260 7.040 14.040. QSL. Don Banta - K5DB, 3407 Diana St., Springdale, AR 72764. For QSL information, see N5BVA page on QRZ.com https://bellavistaradioclub.org

• 10/14/2023 | Amis Mill Historic Site -Rogersville TN

  Oct 14, 1000Z-1400Z, N2A, Rogersville, TN. Hawkins Hancock Amateur Radio Team. 7.80 7.90 14.30 14.40 . Certificate. David Broome, 360 Rogers Road, Rogersville, TN 37857. mebtfs@yahoo.com

• 10/14/2023 | Collins Radio 90th Anniversary

  Oct 14, 1400Z-2000Z, W0CXX, Cedar Rapids, IA. Collins Amateur Radio Club. 7.180 MHz 14.263 MHz 21.380 MHz 28.380 MHz. QSL. Brice Anton-Jensen, 1110 Lyndhurst Dr, Hiawatha, IA 52233. https://www.qrz.com/db/W0CXX

• 10/14/2023 | Commemorating the First "Ham Radio Day" at the Sarasota County Library

  Oct 14, 1400Z-2000Z, N4V, Nokomis, FL. Tamiami Amateur Radio Club. 14.040 14.230 21.040 21.210. QSL. Tamiami Amateur Radio Club, PO Box 976, Nokomis, FL 34274. www.tamiamiarc.org

• 10/14/2023 | Commemorating US Navy birthday on 13 OCT 1775

  Oct 14, 1600Z-2300Z, NI6IW, San Diego, CA. USS Midway Museum Ship. 14.320 7.250 14.070 PSK31 DSTAR on Papa system repeaters. QSL. USS Midway Museum Ship COMEDTRA, 910 N Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101. www.qrz/db/ni6iw

• 10/14/2023 | Eisenhower Birthday Special Event

  Oct 14-Oct 22, 0000Z-2359Z, W5*/K5*/N5*, All over USA. Grayson County ARC. 14.250. QSL. Grayson County ARC, PO Box 642, Sherman, TX 75091. *We'll be using the following call signs... W5E, W5I, W5S, K5E, W5N, W5H, W5O, W5W, N5E, W5R Questions? email lee.n5sly@gmail.com graysoncountyarc.org

• • 10/14/2023 | Lester Dent - Doc Savage Special Event

    Oct 14-Oct 15, 1500Z-0000Z, W0D, Macon, MO. Macon County ARC. 28.400 14.280 7.250 3.950. Certificate & QSL. Dale Bagley, K0KY, P.O. BOX 13, Macon, MO 63552. The purpose of the Special Event is to honor of the accomplishments of Lester Dent, one of the most prolific writers of Pulp Fiction, and an Amateur Radio Operator, WØCBL. It is also the 90th "Birthday" of his creation, the first modern "Superhero" Doc Savage. For more information about Lester Dent, use the link CW QSO ABOVE EXTRA CLASS SEGMENT. https://www.maconcountymissouriarc.org/lester-dent-special-events

  • 72 de Larry W2LJ